Private Prison Guards Contracted by ICE Retaliate Against Immigrants for Protesting Abuse and Neglect Inside New California City Immigrant Detention Center

For Immediate Release

September 19, 2025

Media Contacts: 

Alex Mensing, California Collaborative for Immigrant Justice, alex[@]ccijustice.org, 415-684-5463

Marcela Hernandez, Detention Watch Network, mhernandez[@]detentionwatchnetwork.org, 626-260-8003

Eunice Hernandez Chenier, Pangea Legal Services, eunice[@]pangealegal.org, 415-404-8057

Private Prison Guards Contracted by ICE Retaliate Against Immigrants for Protesting Abuse and Neglect Inside New California City Immigrant Detention Center

Detained immigrants report guards entered their cell blocks wearing riot gear and arresting several protesters 

California City, CA – Immigrants who launched protests last night inside the California City Immigration Detention Center are already facing retaliation from guards with the private prison company CoreCivic that operates the facility for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Yesterday, over 100 immigrants detained at the California City ICE Detention Center launched a peaceful collective action, including sit-ins and meal refusals, to protest severe abuse and neglect. 

Immigrants in one cell block area reported officers entered in riot gear and were threatening use of force if the detained people peacefully engaging in a sit-in did not return to their cells. At least one housing unit reported being placed on a multi-day lockdown and does not have access to telephones, which violates their First Amendment and Fifth Amendment due process rights. 

Furthermore, at least four individuals across multiple pods were reportedly handcuffed and taken to solitary confinement.

One individual requested toilet paper from a CoreCivic officer and was denied because he was on a “hunger strike”.

###